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U.S. Economy: Home Prices Rise, Confidence Declines
By Courtney Schlisserman and Shobhana Chandra
July 28 (Bloomberg) -- A gauge of U.S. house prices posted its first monthly gain in three years, providing some solace to consumers shaken by rising joblessness.
The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index rose 0.5 percent in May from the prior month, the first gain since July 2006 and biggest since May of that year, the group said today in New York. A Conference Board report showed consumer confidence this month fell more than forecast.
Stabilization of the worst housing market since the 1930s and a rebound in stocks may bring an end this quarter to the record slump in household wealth. Even so, Americans are likely to boost savings and limit spending as unemployment is projected to top 10 percent by early 2010, restraining any recovery from the deepest recession in five decades.
“The fact that home prices may be finding some semblance of stability is good news that things are not likely to get worse,” said Mark Vitner, a senior economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Charlotte, North Carolina. “Folks are still concerned about their jobs” and “the loss of housing wealth is going to weigh on consumer spending for years to come.”
The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index was down 17.1 percent from May 2008, less than projected and the smallest year-over- year drop in nine months.
Signs of ‘Bottom’
“If you’re looking for a bottom, there’s a lot of good stuff here,” Karl Case, an economics professor at Wellesley College and co-creator of the S&P/Case-Shiller index, said on a Bloomberg Radio interview. “If you’re looking for a real recovery, it’s going to take some time.”
